Can Health Literacy Effectively Enhance Blood Donation Rates?

Abstract

The main aim of this study was to assess the health literacy level among blood donors and contrast it with the health literacy level observed within the general community. The study encompassed blood donors aged 18 years and older who presented themselves to the Erciyes University Blood Center within the period from February 10, 2023, to April 1, 2023. A questionnaire form including sociodemographic characteristics and the Turkish Health Literacy Scale was utilized. Independent T Test and One Way ANOVA were employed to compare the mean scores of the health literacy scale across independent groups. The mean health literacy scores of the general population in Turkey and blood donors were compared using the one-sample T test method. The percentage of participants demonstrating adequate or excellent health literacy was found to be 53%. The health literacy score of blood donors was 34.64 (95% CI: 33.9–35.4), significantly higher than the general health literacy score of 29.5 (95% CI: 28.8–30.3) in Turkey (p < 0.001). The health literacy level of blood donors was found to be higher compared to the general population. The principal reason for this could be the inclination of individuals leading a healthy lifestyle to donate blood out of concern for the health of others and their inherent tendency to exhibit benevolent behavior. Consistent with the findings of the study, we posit that health literacy can indeed play a pivotal role in augmenting the number of blood donors.